Sermon #3 @ St. Paris UMC (7.12.09)

Pastor Dave Kepple

Text: Matthew 14:13-21

Title: “We Have Everything We Need”

Date: July 12, 2009 (6th Sunday after Pentecost)


Internet Link for primary scripture text used in this sermon:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2014:13-21&version=31


My name is Gabriel -- but I’m no angel.
In Hebrew my name means “man of God,” but the truth is I’m just an ordinary man.
I once met a godly man, however. In fact, I have come to believe He was the very Son of God.
I’ll tell you about him, but first let me tell you about me and my family. It all ties in together.
My wife, Esther, has given me four children.
First came three girls: Rachel, Phoebe and Tabitha. Then finally – at last, thank God! – a son was born, a boy named Eli.
We live in the town of Bethsaida on the north edge of the Sea of Galilee. I have lived here all of my life – some 33 years now. I am a potter, like my father before me. I am not a rich man by any means, but we get by and usually have enough to eat. We have, however, known great heartache in our family.
An imperial soldier raped my wife some years ago, and then killed her parents when they discovered him with her. That soldier never was punished – they simply sent him to another post in Syria. How my Esther suffered. For a long time, she cringed whenever seeing the swine in the Roman army – and we saw them all the time. How I hated them all.
But we also have lived with the sorrow of our daughter’s blindness. Tabitha has been blind since birth, and it’s not been easy for her – or us. Some people even said it was our fault – mine and Esther’s – for having committed some sin. I didn’t care what people thought. I just wanted my daughter to be able to see. And there was nothing anyone could do about it – or so I thought. That brings me to my story.
You probably have heard of Jesus the Nazarene. I had been hearing about him for months, before that day he finally came near Bethsaida.
They said Jesus was a rabbi from western Galilee, and a most amazing teacher at that. But the thing which really excited me was hearing the stories that were spreading like wildfire, stories about his miracles – miracles of healing. They said he seemed to have the power of God at his command – that with a word from Jesus, the lame could suddenly walk upright. Even lepers had been healed. And when I heard he healed a man who had been blind since birth, my heart started pounding. If there was any way possible, I knew I had to take my Tabitha to see him.
The opportunity came one morning when I heard Jesus had arrived by boat to a place just five miles from Bethsaida. Esther and the two older girls were working at my brother’s house, so I just closed the shop and took Tabitha and Eli with me. We weren’t going to miss out on seeing the famous rabbi. I didn’t know how long it might take, so I told Eli to bring plenty of bread and some fish for us to eat.
It was a hot afternoon and a long walk, but we were excited when we saw the crowd – we knew this must be where Jesus was. I guess we weren’t the only ones desperate to see him. There must have been thousands. People said he treated everyone he met with caring and kindness, like he had always known them. And once again, he had demonstrated the power to heal many of the sick ones.
When we got close, I was so excited I could hardly breathe. Finally we were there – in his presence. Jesus put his hands on Tabitha’s shoulders, and with the warmest smile I’d ever seen, he said, “Look at me child.” I swear -- from that very moment -- our beautiful daughter could see perfectly – as if there’d never been anything wrong. I fell down and kissed the Master’s feet, and I began to cry. He touched my head, then he leaned down and whispered in my ear: “You, too, are healed my son. You and your wife.” And then he turned, and walked away.
I noticed some of the men with Jesus talking in hushed tones as daylight began to fade. I could hear the one called Peter say something about the late hour, and needing to send everyone away because they would be hungry. My 9-year-old son, Eli, heard him, too. Before I could stop him, Eli approached the men and handed them the sack with our food.
Though I feared we would go hungry this night, I didn’t really mind Eli’s childish gesture. After all, this Jesus had just delivered my daughter from blindness. I would have given them anything they wanted!
Suddenly, Jesus spoke loudly, saying, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
I couldn’t make out what was said next. But a few moments later, Jesus told everyone to sit down on the grass, and I was startled to see he was holding the same bread and fish that Eli had carried.
Jesus thanked the LORD for the food, and then he broke the loaves and gave them to Peter and the other men, who started passing out bread and fish to all the people on the ground. It seemed absurd – such a meager amount of food for such a huge crowd! But they just kept going, passing out the food – we even got some.
There was a sense of wonder in the air as we ate together. We knew we were in the presence of no ordinary man.
Within a short time, everyone had been taken care of – and there was a ton of leftovers, baskets full! I had never had a meal such as this before. It not only filled my belly – it seemed to satisfy my soul.
What a day it was – and what a man!
They said Jesus would be heading for Jerusalem in a short time.
Soon everyone would find out that Jesus was no ordinary man.

* * *

Now shifting back to the 21st century . . .
Many of you, I would guess, are at least somewhat familiar with the story of this miracle of Jesus, when he fed more than 5,000 people in the middle of nowhere with a few loaves of bread and a couple fish. In fact, this is the only miracle of Christ that appears in all four gospels.
On the other hand, I bet there’s not a soul here – with one possible exception – familiar with the story of the Lord’s healing of Tabitha, the girl who had been blind since birth.
There’s a reason for that. This story is a product of my imagination. However, that doesn’t mean it – or something very much like it – couldn’t have happened. You know why I say that?
Here’s why. Let me point you to the Gospel of John for a moment, to the 20th chapter, where John tells us: “Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30-31)
Of all the astonishing things that Jesus did, how awesome it is to consider there were many other “signs and wonders” Jesus performed that weren’t even recorded!
As John put it, “If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” (John 21:25)
My friend “Gabriel” and his family may be fictional, but there is nothing fictional about the miracle of the loaves and fish, and the power that comes from Jesus Christ. This power flowed not only in the ancient world, but in our world today.
The power and presence of Jesus Christ can change people today, it can change situations and circumstances today, and yes, it most certainly can and does bring healing today.
And when we come to the Lord in faith – when we put our whole trust in his grace – Jesus will always give us what we need, if not always what we want.
We can’t force it though. We can’t treat Jesus like an object to satisfy our various wants and needs – like some genie in a bottle.
What we can do is come to Christ humbly, on our knees, and give him thanks and praise for that which he has already done for us through his suffering and death on a cross. We can come to him humbly, whatever our problems may be, and we can place them into his hands – his nail-scarred hands – and then we can let go. In other words, we surrender; or, like the song says, we surrender all. Then, in the fullness of God’s love, we can rise to our feet with the new life that Christ brings, and ask our King what we can do for Him.
Jesus will give us everything we need to respond in faith to his call upon our lives.
We may or may not be successful. Jesus doesn’t care if we’re successful. He cares that we are faithful. He cares that we love Him enough to spend time with him. He cares that we love him enough to feed his sheep.
And meanwhile He continues to feed us, each and every day, with bread. Like the manna that God provided for the Israelites as they wandered the wilderness in search of the Promised Land, Jesus surely will sustain us – day by day.
In a few moments the same Jesus who fed that hungry throng with five loaves of bread and a couple fish will feed us, too, as we come to his table.
As we eat this bread and drink this cup, we once again will receive this holy meal that satisfies as no other can.
For this meal is the very life of Christ, poured out for you and for me.
Thanks be to God.